Sodium is still lagging behind lithium as a key battery material, in terms of raw material cost and storage capacity. However, sodium does have the advantage of being abundant, whereas lithium is becoming geopolitically sensitive. Consumers meanwhile are more interested in their wallets. So will sodium-ion ever compete with lithium-ion on a level playing ground?
Will Sodium Ever Compete With Lithium on Price?
Researchers at Stanford University combined forces with SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, to produce the report we link to below. They concluded that sodium-ion still has some catching up to do, before it could face up to lithium iron phosphate competition.
The scientists observe how sodium battery engineers, and their backers, still hope to capture a portion of lithium’s mega market. Their chances may have been riding higher when lithium prices rocketed after COVID. However, since then, lithium prices have tumbled, as more supply came on line.
Therefore, the research team continues, sodium-ion has a way to go before it becomes a low cost, technologically-advanced contender. That’s because sodium-ions store less energy than lithium-ions do, and that affects our driving range, and talk time too.
So Where to From Here, Sodium-ion?
The combined Stanford University and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory study, evaluated more than 6,000 scenarios to get closer to an answer. They concluded that sodium is still lagging behind lithium iron phosphate in terms of cost.
And therefore, they continue, “sodium-ion batteries will require a set of technology advances, and favorable market conditions to approach incumbent lithium-ion on price”. Their report suggests several sodium-ion pathways that might reach cost-competitiveness in the 2030s:
- Increase sodium-ion energy densities to decrease materials intensity.
- Move away from costly nickel metal that most sodium-ion designs rely on.
- Replace hard carbon anodes with alloying ones, or eliminate the anode completely.
The researchers conclude that engineering advances are the best path to reducing the relative cost of sodium-ion batteries. Although the possibility of the technology becoming price-advantageous, remains low at this period in time.
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